This is a summery of Burford Jeakins, Son of Burford Jeakins and
Sarah Harriet Mitchell.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burford Jeakins. b. 1834 in Battle, Sussex East Sussex, England.
d. 22 September 1861.Carnifax Ferry, West Virginia.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note - I am not sure if the information meant Western Virginia, but
it stated West Virginia.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burford Jeakins: Enlisted 20 June 1861 as a private at age 26.
State: Ohio.
Unit Numbers: 1920-1920
Company: C, 7th Infantry Regiment, Ohio.
POW: 26 August 1861 at Cross Lanes, West Virginia
died: 22 September 1861. ar Carnifax Ferry, West Virginia.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Death caused by wounds in the battle of Cross Lanes, West Virginia.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Beloit College Archives. Archive collection - Civil War.
Sons of Beloit who died for law and Liberty.
Burford Jeakins - Racine, entered Prep, April, 1851, College
September 1857, Term of study, 2 1/3 years, War servuce, 6th
Ohio Infantry. Killed at Cross Lanes, September 39, 1862.
** This is misinformation, he served in the Ohio 7th Infantry Volunteers, and he died September 22, 1861, acording to
Army records.**
and then entered Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio. He was studing
to be a Minister.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following excerpts from "The Oberlin Evangelist."
A Document by Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio..
----------------------- Commencement Exercises -----------------------------
Document 17: "Commencement Exercises, "Oberlin Evangelist"
11 September 1861. Page: 151
The College Class proper filled the hours of Wednesday morning
their number in the total, twenty-nine; of whom six were in the
camp and war-field in Virginia { A }, having enlisted to serve during
the war. The usual degree of A.B. was conderred on them, however
inasmuch as their course was nearly completed and was so far
satisfactory.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oberlin men, including Oberlin College students, were members
of Company C of the 7th Regiment Ohio Volunteers Infantry. The
men on duty were recognized in the commencement program by
an astrisk in the place of rhe title for their graduation addresses,
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Soldier's Returning--Poem by Lucy K. Fairchild, Oberlin.
____ * Burford Jeakins. Beloit, Wisconsin.
Oration ----- ----, * Burford Jeakins, Beloit, Wisconsin.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Excerpts from Ohio History, Volume 20. Page: 317
Company C, 7th Regiment, Ohio Infantry Volunteers, ----------------
Our Company is the first one formed and is composed mainly
of Christians. It is called the "Praying Company."
Tutor Shurtleff ( at that time an instructor in Oberlin College, later
made Brevet Brigadier General ), is our Captain.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Volume 20. Page: 321
Regarding the final advance of the 7th Ohio to Cross Lanes,
Sergy. W. W. Parmenter writes in his diary: "We went on and
reached Cross lanes just before dark. Several companies were
already there. In the advance a hanger-on to the regiment who was
ahead, was shot by the enemy's pickets. At Cross Lanes seven
or eight slaughtered oxen were captured. This to me was sufficient
evidence that there was a large force of the enemy somewhere near
When our companies all came up, we had a force of 600 men.
Company A went up a hill near, and exchanged several shots with the enemy on a neighboring hill. Soon after dark, pickets were sent out, and the companies were lodged around, several companies in
a church, and the rest scattered around in little log houses some
distance from each other. It was difficult keeping warm. The house
our company was in was overcrowded, and some had to stay
outdoors.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Volume 20. Page: 322
During breakfast, in the gray light of the dawn the lines of gray clad
men moving swiftly forward in perfect order, could be distinctly seen.
Down the road came Major Casement, riding at breakneck speed
"Company A. tale that hill". Company C. take that hill", he cried,
pointing to two hills about 200 yards distance from the road.
Company C, turned off the road, and at a run made for the ridge.
Across an open field they rushed, here receiving the first sever fire
from the enemy.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They climbed a fence and started to ascend the hill which had a gradual slope towards the road. A battalion of rifle-men, concealed
in a corn field on the same side of the road as Company C, and
close at hand, opened with deadly effect. The bullets which before
had wizzed by their ears, now rained on them in a continous stream tearing the ground all around them, and wounding many.
JEAKINS was the first one struck. He had his arm shattered. Almost immediately, Sheldon staggered backward, a bullet through his breast. Kellogg caught him and helped him and JEAKINS part way up the hill to a wheat stack. "Sheldon, when last seen, was
laying on his face spitting blood, He was no doubt mortally wounded.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Volume 20. Page: 324
On the field of battle were left Cross, Orton, JEAKINS, Sheldon,
Collins and Jones.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Volume 20. Page: 325
After being surrounded, and ordered to surrender, Capt. Shurtleff surrendered with 14 of his C Company.
Joseph Collins died the day after the battle . He was buried on the
field. BURFORD JEAKINS lived until 10 o'clock Sunday evening,
September 22nd, when he too passed away. He was wounded on
August 26,1861 abd died September 22,1861. He lived aproxmently
27 days before passing away.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The "Dispatch", a Richmond newspaper, in its September 7th issue, had the following letter from a correspondent with Floyd's Command. It is dated Camp Gauley, Floyd's Brigade, August 28th
1861. "On yesterday I attended one of our Yankee captain prisoners to the hospital to see the wounded men. It is on the oopposite side of the Gauley distance, two miles. His meeting
with his men was quite affecting. Shakeing them by the hand, he
said he was glad to see them, 'under any circumstances.' He was
a tutor in one of the Ohio colleges, and among the most dangerously wounded were four of his old scholars. One of them
died before he left, and some of the rest will".
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As this was the 7th of September, I assume Burford was among
the dangerously wounded in the hospital. He did not die in a
Confederate Prison. Nor is there any information herein that he
escaped and was recaptured and died in Prison. He was left on
the field of battle and taken prisoner there on, then to the
Confederate hospital. Perhaps the obituary will have more information.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The prisoners not in the hospital were transported to Richmond, Virginia on August 28th, and then sent to New Oreleans, LA, to Prison.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Gualey Bridge on the Gauley River near the mouth of Meadow
River near Carinfex Ferry was the site of the Confederate hospital.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are 320 pages in this Ohio History of the Oberlin College
Civil War History. All in Volume 20.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burford Jeakins never married, he enlisted at age 26 years, and
died at that age or near age 27, As I haven't found his true date,
month and day of his birthday, I will assume he died at age 26 years of age. So Far, I do not know his burial site, but a family member has his obituary, and I will atempt to obtain a copy.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The 1841 England Census has Burford in England and also the
rest of his siblings.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------